PANTHERS PARTNER WITH ADU SPORTS TOURS AND HEARTPRINT LTD

Pacific Pines Panthers are in partnership with ADU Tours and Heartprint Charity.

Garry and Wendy O'Brien (ADU Tours and Heartprint Founders) have a long standing history with Gold Coast Basketball. Both dedicated several years to the association and have set up a Basketball tour company as well as a community based support program in Cambodia.

Pacific Pines Panthers will be part of their Chicken and Egg Program moving forward with a percentage of the clubs fundraising efforts throughout the year going towards the program.

For more information on the Heartprint foundation and programs that they offer please read the information below.

We will also keep you updated on upcoming sports tours that they are running which also go towards funding their community programs.

If you would like to assist in any way or are interested in tours please contact Garry or Wendy on the information below:

ADU Tours working to support Heartprint offer tours of up to 10 people the opportunity to travel to Siem Reap Cambodia. You will stay at Heartprint House Community Support Centre and participate in the Heartprint Build Program. You and your fellow travellers will build homes for families living in extreme poverty, working side by side local Khmer builders and spending time with the recipient families within their community on this unique journey of a lifetime

Volunteer Tour Packages start from $950 Organize a group or join an existing tour.More information can be found on ADU Tours website www.adutours.com.au

COMMUNITY BUILDS

By helping build a house, you are not only building a house but also a future for a family. Many families are barely surviving on a day-to-day basis and simply don't have the funds to build a house. These families are living in make shift houses that provide very little shelter, leak during rains and are unsafe for their children. Most people just need a little hand up in life and thrive knowing that people actually care about them. Building a house for a family can give them a sense of pride as well as a good nights' sleep reducing illness and injury.

Heartprint build stilted houses in areas in and around Siem Reap. Due to the availability and cost of timber in Cambodia, the houses are constructed from concrete stumps, with wooden frames and tin surrounds. Houses have lock up window shutters and doors to ensure the safety of the family and their possessions. Families, Heartprint, build for are generally in extreme need, destitute and include widows/widowers with children, people with life threatening illnesses or on a wage that makes them unable to provide for their family. Heartprint access the poorest families with the help of referrals; as well as meeting and profiling them, they also speak with the Chiefs of the villages to make sure they are helping those that need it most.

Where possible Heartprint also carry out repairs to houses if it is more economical than building a new house and the house is structurally stable. This option cannot only save money but also means less inconvenience to families who usually have to move to temporary accommodation while the new house is being built on the current site.

Community builds consist of more than just building houses; toilets and wells are also a major part of helping families change their circumstances. By providing sanitation, Heartprint are stopping the spread of disease and preventable illness as well as teaching better hygiene practices. For every house they build, if there is sufficient money and space, they also provide the family with a toilet and clean drinking water via a well if they do not already have one. If the house block doesn't have enough space to accommodate this, Heartprint will speak with the village chief to find an alternative, which may include building a community toilet block or well that can be shared with other families in the community. Obviously this is not an ideal situation however sharing amongst a number of families is a huge improvement on the current situation and is not an uncommon practice in Cambodia.

WANT TO DONATE?

Cost to build one house: $2,000

Cost to build one toilet: $500

Cost to build one well: $280

If there is a surplus of money left over from your donation for any reason it will be carried over to a community pool that will help with future build projects.

HEART OF GOLD CLUB

Heartprint are looking for 100 people with a heart of gold to help support Heartprint House Community Support Centre in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

How can you become a member?

The first step is to decide to pledge to make a minimum TaxDeductable donation of $20 a month for a minimum of 12 months. The donation does not have to be a set amount as long as it is a minimum of $20 and may vary from month to month. Remember the club is only open to the first 100 people.

What do you get as a member?

Invitation to our private Heart of Gold Facebook group.

Three nights accommodation at Heartprint House in Siem Reap, our volunteer accommodation part of our Community support centre.

Your name will be placed on a heart on our Heart of Gold board at Heartprint House.

The satisfaction of being an ongoing contributor to the lives of the less fortunate in Cambodia.

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